


Flying Lessons

by st_aurafina



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-05
Updated: 2014-01-05
Packaged: 2018-01-07 14:01:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1120706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/st_aurafina/pseuds/st_aurafina
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Doctor's regeneration brings chaos to the TARDIS, and Clara searches for help.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Flying Lessons

**Author's Note:**

  * For [misaffection](https://archiveofourown.org/users/misaffection/gifts).



It's amazing what you come up with in a crisis, thought Clara, deleting "How not to crash TARDIS" from the keyboard-thingo that she hoped was a search engine and not, say, the oven controls or the life support system. Still, whatever they were crashing into seemed to have whisked itself away, and the thingies above the console were turning around and around, and the floor was as steady as one could hope for, given that nobody was actually flying anything. 

The Doctor – should she even call him that? – paced around the console, rubbing his back and muttering about his kidneys. 

"It's the haemoglobin, you see? That's where the problem lies, that's the problem with the colour. Maybe I should have gone with copper. They'd be good and green, if I'd used copper in the haemoglobin." 

Clara reached out, snagged the sleeve of the familiar suit and cringed at the unfamiliar elbow inside it. "Doctor," she said, with uncertainty. 

He wheeled on her, all eyebrows and fury, and she jumped back with a squeak. 

"Don't worry! Sorry to bother you – please, keep talking about your insides." 

"Copper!" shouted the Doctor. "Or, or, perhaps manganese? How would these kidneys look in manganese? That's a better question, I really think it is." 

Clara backed away to the keyboard-thingo, and carefully typed "Flying lessons: TARDIS." The moment she hit the big red button that she presumed functioned as 'enter', the deck tilted elegantly, as if the ship had turned on her heel and changed course. 

The atmosphere had changed inside the TARDIS; the frenetic buzz settled, and even though the Doctor still muttered and paced, Clara had the feeling that someone, somewhere knew where they were going and why. When the TARDIS came to a stop, it was gentle, but certain, something Clara felt through the soles of her shoes. 

She expected, oh, Clara didn't know what she expected when the doors opened, but it wasn't a woman in a prison uniform. She stepped into the console room, and took everything in with surprise on her face. 

"This is out of order," she said, in wonder. 

At the sound of her voice, though his back was to the doors, the Doctor gasped, and stopped still, one hand on the console. The stillness in the TARDIS, after all the noise and energy, left Clara's heart thumping. 

"Oh, my love, what's happened?" The woman took him by the shoulders, and turned him around. 

"River!" The Doctor folded in on himself, fell to his knees, and wrapped his arms around her, finally still, finally silent. Clara didn't dare breathe, for fear of breaking something. 

River stroked his hair, and smiled over the top of him at Clara. "This must be very strange for you. Don't be afraid." 

"I know what's happened. I know it's still him," said Clara. "It's just that he seems so unhappy." She pointed at the console, her search terms still floating above it, and added, "Also, neither of us can fly the TARDIS, apparently." 

"Ah," said River. "Well done, then, for finding a way to ask for help. It's something he's never really mastered. Perhaps this time." 

Clara took a tentative step in River's direction. "Can you help him?" 

River reached out a hand and drew her in close. "Oh, sweetie. We both can."


End file.
